Key West Stages Hemingway Festival Travel Notebook

July 06, 1986|by JANE KOCH, The Morning Call

Some of Ernest Hemingway's favorite pastimes - fishing, feasting, arm wrestling and story telling - will be highlighted at Key West, Fla., next week when the city will stage its 6th annual Hemingway Days Festival.

The celebration will begin July 14 with a radio trivia quiz and end July 20 with announcement of the writing contest winners and presentation of Hemingway Journalism Awards. During the intervening days, the author will be the inspiration for a look-alike contest and arm wrestling matches at Sloppy Joe's Bar, a billfish tournament, and story-telling competition at Pier House. "A Night on the Town With Papa" party will take place in the gardens of the Hemingway House Museum at 907 Whitehead Street July 18, and an Island Food Fest and Street Fair will liven Old Town's Duval Street the next day.

Hemingway and his second wife Pauline, who owned the Hemingway House from 1931 to 1961, filled the dwelling with rugs, tiles, chandeliers and furniture brought from all parts of the world. A registered national historic landmark, the Spanish colonial home was built of rock found in Key West. Six-toed cats, descendants of the author's own pets, still roam the property.

A parade of boats at noon July 19 will open the annual Wilmington Waterfest in Delaware. The event, featuring a regatta and demonstrations by the City of Wilmington Volunteer Dive and Rescue Team, will take place on the Christina River off Christina Park.

The park will be the setting for stage entertainment and exhibitions. Ethnic foods will be on sale. Admission to the Waterfest is free, but there will be a small charge for some activities. The Wilmington City Council, the State of Delaware and New Castle County are among the sponsors.

QUILT FESTIVAL

More than 80 quilts from private collections, plus others on loan from the Shelburne Museum, Bennington Museum and historical societies will be on display during the 10th annual Vermont Quilt Festival, July 11 to 13 at Norwich University in Northfield, Vt. Besides the exhibition, the program will include workshops, lectures, a fashion show and merchandising booths. Antique quilts will be appraised by Caroline Fernandez, a member of the New England Appraisers' Association.

Tickets, which will be available at the door, are $3 for adults. Children younger than 18 will be admitted free.

For details, call 802-485-7092.

CAPE HATTERAS

People who guarded the lighthouse on Cape Hatteras from 1870 until the 1930s braved hurricanes, witnessed shipwrecks and survived enemy invasions during several wars. Their duty was to keep the tower light burning, alerting mariners to the treacherous Diamond Shoals off North Carolina's Outer Banks. To illustrate the lives led by these intrepid adventurers, the National Park Service has restored the 132-year-old home to its 1930s appearance.

The quarters have been converted into the Hatteras Island Visitor's Center, and are open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day during the summer.

For more information concerning the Outer Banks or other sections of North Carolina, call the state's Division of Travel and Tourism at 800-VISIT NC.

LYNCHBURG BIRTHDAY

Lynchburg, Va., will celebrate its bicentennial summer with a weekend of activities at Poplar Forest,Thomas Jefferson's summer home.

On Legend Day, Aug. 1, Jefferson's fifth great-grandson will portray the statesman in a re-enactment of his first taste of the tomato. Evidently he liked what he sampled because Jefferson's Tomatoe Faire in the Park will take place Aug. 2. The event will feature period arts and crafts, entertainment, gardeners' contests and tomato dishes. Aug. 3 will be a Day at Poplar Forest, which will include 18th-century music and costumed characters.

For more information, call the Lynchburg Visitors Information Center at 804-847-1811.

SMITHSONIAN

If you are going to drive to the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., plan to park in the National History lot at 10th Street and Constitution Avenue or at one of the several commercial lots nearby. The parking garage at the museum has been closed to the public.

Located between the American History Museum and the National Gallery of Art, the museum facility is open from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. daily. Rates are $1.50 for each of the first three hours and $1.75 per hour for the time beyond three hours.

For overnight visitors to the capital, probably the easiest method of reaching the Smithsonian museums from hotels is by Metro or bus. The buses stop along Independence and Constitution avenues. Subway stations near the museums include Smithsonian, L'Enfant, Plaza, Federal Triangle and National Archives.